Andy Dwyer
Sir Andrew Maxwell "Andy" Dwyer ' 'KBE is a fictional character in the NBC comedy Parks and Recreation. He is Ann Perkins' ex-boyfriend, is married to April Ludgate, is a successful musician in the band Mouse Rat, and formerly ran the Shoe Polishing Stand in Pawnee City Hall. His alter egos are Burt Macklin, Chip Hackman, Johnny Karate, and Sargent Thunderfist MD. He is portrayed by Chris Pratt. Background At the start of the series, Andy Dwyer is the boyfriend of Ann Perkins. The two had been living together for three years, but Ann matured faster than Andy did and, while Ann entered into a career in nursing, Andy remained lazy and spoiled. Andy is unemployed, but is the lead singer and guitarist for his rock band, which has gone through numerous names including Scarecrow Boat, and more recently, Mouse Rat. He falls into the pit behind Ann's house and breaks his legs. This causes Ann to call Leslie's attention to the pit, which sparks Leslie's desire to have the pit filled and turned into something new. Eventually, Ann learns that Andy lied to her about how long he needed casts on his legs so that she would keep spoiling him. This infuriates Ann, and she breaks up with Andy and kicks him out of their house. Andy then lives in the pit for some time. However, with some help from Leslie, he manages to get a job, and get back on his feet. He is later in a relationship with April Ludgate, and tries to get his life together by becoming a policeman. He passes the written exam with 100%, but fails the personality test. Musical Career Having never pursued any career other than musicianship until season 2, Andy is very much a starving artist. He has been playing with the band Mouse Rat since they began, although the band has never made it farther than the indie circuit. His musical style falls into alternative rock, with Dave Matthews Band being his main inspiration, and his vocal style is very similar to Eddie Vedder of Pearl Jam. While his initial music was often vulgar and, overall, bad, after the events of the series, he began writing music about tragedy, such as his falling in the Lot 48 Pit and the death of Li'l Sebastian, and love, regarding Ann and April. His largest shows include his performance at Li'l Sebastian's funeral and the Pawnee-Eagleton Unity Concert. He later discovered his talent in children's music when a coworker paid him to sing at his nephew's birthday. The kids loved him and he enjoyed himself so April suggested that he make a career out of it. He was reluctant at first since he still had a dream of being a rock star but decided to go with it and became known as Johnny Karate. Band Names: *Andy and the D-Bags *The Andy Andy Andy *Andy Dwyer Experience *Angel Snack *Crackfinger *Death of a Scam Artist *Department of Homeland Obscurity *Everything Rhymes with Orange *Fiveskin *Flames For Flames *Fleetwood Mac Sex Pants *Fourskin *God Hates Figs *Hand Grill Suicide *Jet Black Pope *Just The Tip *Malice In Chains *Mouse Rat *Muscle Confusion *Ninjadick *Nothing Rhymes with Orange *Penis Pendulum *Possum Pendulum *Punch Face Champions *Puppy Pendulum *Rad Wagon *Rat Mouse *Razordick *Teddy Bear Suicide *The Artist Formerly Known as the Lead Singer of Mouse Rat *The Artist Formerly Known as The Artist Formerly Known as the Lead Singer of Mouse Rat *Threeskin *Two Doors Down *Scarecrow Boat *Johnny Karate and his Magical Guitar Stick *Tackle Shaft Storyline Season 1 Before the start of the season, Andy fell into a large construction pit and broke both his legs when, in an intoxicated state, he tried to retrieve a discarded toaster from the bottom of the pit. Although Ann was unaware at first that he was drunk at the time of the fall, the incident inspires her to attend parks and recreation meetings to advocate the pit be filled in, which leads Ann to befriend parks deputy director Leslie . With both legs in casts, Andy is pampered by Ann, who brings him food and lets him play video games all day. When the doctors inform Andy after a few weeks that the casts can be removed, Andy asks that they be kept on longer so he can continue receiving this treatment from Ann. Eventually, after the casts are removed, Ann learns this and becomes extremely angry with Andy, which eventually leads to the two breaking up. Season 2 Andy moved into a tent pitched in the pit and watches Ann, claiming to be protecting her. He made many failed attempts to reconcile with Ann. He does not like Mark because he is dating Ann, but pretends to whenever Ann is around. Andy is injured in the pit a second time when Leslie arranges to have it filled with dirt, unaware Andy is inside at the time. Andy considers suing the town with the hopes of getting money and winning Ann back, but Leslie convinces him to settle out of court exchange for the pit being filled in. Leslie gives Andy a job as the shoe-shiner at the Pawnee City Hall as part of his settlement. He is often seen being rude to one of his best customers, Kyle. April Ludgate, the Parks Department intern, has developed a crush on Andy, but he is so far unaware of her feelings toward him. In "Greg Pikitis", Andy makes his first appearance as his alias, Burt Macklin from the FBI, while attempting to interrogate a teenage prankster named Greg Pikitis. Toward the end of the season, Andy begins to reciprocate April's feelings, but their age difference causes a wedge between them. In the season finale, Andy admits to April that he likes her and asks her out, but she turns him down due to what she perceives as his residual feelings for Ann. When Andy is hospitalized, April finally agrees to go out with him and then kisses him. Unfortunately, Ann kissed Andy earlier and when Andy tells her this, she storms off. Season 3 In the first episode, Andy is coaching a youth basketball team. He prefers a hands-off approach and mostly lets the boys run wild. Tom Haverford gives him preferential treatment out of jealousy that Ron Swanson is still dating Tom's ex-wife, Wendy Haverford. April Ludgate, still angry with Andy for having kissed Ann, returns from a vacation with her new boyfriend Eduardo. A disappointed Andy vows to win her back. In "Flu Season", he fills in as Ron's assistant at work. Despite his attempts not to get involved in other people's personal affairs, Ron confides in Andy that April is in the hospital and encourages him to visit her. Andy gets help from Chris in "Time Capsule" in winning back April, which makes Ann worry that Andy will once again interfere in her relationship. In "Ron & Tammy: Part 2", April fills in as Chris Traeger's assistant and, impressed with her, he asks April to work with him in Indianapolis, much to the chagrin of Ann and Andy. Throughout "Media Blitz", he struggles to do everything April hates with the hopes of stopping her from moving to Indianapolis. After Ron encourages April to stop stringing Andy along, she finally forgives Andy and kisses him. In "Harvest Festival", April tells Andy she loves him, but is displeased when Andy replies, "Awesome-sauce!" instead of "I love you too." She later learns, however, that this is Andy's way of expressing love. In "April and Andy's Fancy Party", Andy and April invite all their friends and family to a dinner party, which turns out to be their secret wedding. Fearing they are moving too fast, Leslie tries to stop it, but Ron assures her that Andy and April need to make their own decisions. Tom is thrilled to be named best man, but is discouraged when he learns Andy has several "best men". Ben gets tired of living in a hotel and moves in with April and Andy, only to discover their place is filthy and they do not know how to take care of themselves. He resolves to teach them how to be adults, which April initially resists because she does not want to lose her individuality. Tom invents a new game show entitled Know Ya Boo, a rip-off of The Newlywed Game, and tests it out on April, Andy, Donna and Jerry. The game causes a big fight when April reveals she likes another band more than Andy's, and April reluctantly seeks advice from Ann about how to make amends with him. April ends the fight and proves her appreciation for Andy by performing one of his songs in city hall. In "Li'l Sebastian", Andy's band Mouse Rat performs at the mini horse's memorial service. Season 4 In "Born & Raised", Andy makes another appearance as Burt Macklin, when he steals Leslie's birth certificate from the Wamapoke County Records building. In "Meet N Greet", Ben is mad when Andy and April decide to throw a Halloween party at their house without asking him. Ron and Ann give Andy and April the unusual wedding present of fixing everything that's broken in their house, including what Andy refers to as "shock wire". In "End of the World", April helps Andy complete his "bucket list" before the world ends. One of them is to 'become an action star'. To do this, he revives his alter ego, FBI agent Burt Macklin, to rescue Janet Snakehole from the evil clutches of his arch-nemesis Mikhail Petrov, played by unwilling participant Jerry. Another is to see the Grand Canyon, but when he and April arrive there after a spontaneous road trip it is implied that he was actually thinking of Mount Rushmore. In "Smallest Park", at Ron and April's encouragement, Andy wants to improve himself and decides to take college classes. He mentions that he never graduated college because he "never 'attended' it." He decides upon "Intro to Women's Studies" with Professor Linda Lonegan. At Leslie's ethics hearing, he sits in along with Ann, Ron, April, Donna, and Jerry as witnesses to defend Leslie's innocence. In "The Comeback Kid", April and Andy adopt a new dog, Champion, without telling Ben first. In "Campaign Ad", April and Andy visit the doctor, where Andy gets various medical issues checked out. In "Dave Returns", Andy is tasked with creating a song for Leslie's City Council campaign. Andy prepares for his final womens' studies exam, which he passes, in "Lucky". In "Bus Tour", as Burt Macklin, Andy solves the mystery of who creamed Jerry with a pie. After some investigative work, he discovers the assailant was actually aiming for Ben, and realizes former Sewage Department employee Joe Fantringham was the perpetrator. At the end of the season, April and Andy are attempting to figure out what they want to do with their lives. Andy is determined to find himself a new career. April realizes that his list of dream jobs all have to do with law enforcement, and encourages him to try to become a police officer. Season 5 During the fifth season, Andy continues to pursue his ambition to become a police officer, routinely seeking help from others to better his chances of passing the police academy entrance exams, notably asking Chris to help him get fit enough to pass the police physical. His marriage with April is not strained by the long-distance between them, frequently sending her (and receiving from her) care packages (some filled with his laundry), as well as visiting her in Washington, DC. Andy helps April take over the parks department while Leslie is working at the city council, including letting April be herself and not acting like Leslie. During his police exam, Andy ends up passing his written test with a perfect score, but failing his personality test since he answers all the questions very personally and not in a cop's mindset. Afterwards he is depressed since he is not fit to be a cop. When April, Tom and Andy are invited to help Ben pick out a charity for the Sweetums Foundation, Andy has good ideas by selecting the Redwood Valley Music program, cutting back on costs, like fancy foods and large office space to nail more charities. Ben asks Andy to be his assistant, which Andy accepts. Season 6 Andy spends the early part of season 6 in England attending to Sweetum's charity work. He lost 50 pounds after giving up beer. He briefly returns to Pawnee, but does not want to return to England until April convinces him to go back. When he returns for good, he constantly falls asleep due to the time difference between Pawnee and London. When Craig Middlebrooks asks him to perform for his nephew's birthday, Andy discovers he has a knack for children's entertainment, and April encourages him to pursue it as a career path under the name "Johnny Karate." In the season finale Andy reunites with MouseRat and sings a Li'l Sebastian memorial song at the Pawnee Unity concert. Season 7 It's 2017 and Andy is now hosting a kids' TV show as his Johnny Karate persona. The prominent business man Eddy met in Season 6 knights Andy during the finale of Johnny Karate's show. Meanwhile, April laments her marriage to him as she feels they'll become boring in their old age. While driving through the warehouse district, they spot a creepy old house with an equally creepy owner. He tells them it was an asylum for old factory workers who ended up going mad. They happily decide to purchase it. When an old friend contacts Tom, Andy decides to help Tom find her and they travel to Chicago. Tom offers her a job in his bistro but is visibly upset when she says she has a boyfriend. However, Andy believes they will get together, and eventually they do. Years past 2017, Andy has two children with his wife April. Trivia * In the episode "Flu Season 2", Andy stated that he got a perfect score on the SAT, thanks to a broken scan tron machine. * Andy indirectly was responsible for starting the whole Parks and Recreation series as if he never got his legs broken from falling into the pit, Ann would have never met Leslie and he himself would have never met April. * April and Andy use Ben's comforters as pillow forts to have sex on. * Andy regularly lets April sit on his lap, shown multiple times in many episodes. * Andy proposed to April using a ring pop. * Andy's favorite food is a skittle, mashed between two star-burst, which he has named "Andy's Mouth Surprise." * Andy reveals most of his songs contain the lines relating of "flying away", "catching dreams", and "spreading wings". He also writes songs relating to his most recent experiences no matter how small, even singing about a lamp and a sandwich. * Andy is the writer/performer of "5000 Candles in the Wind (Bye, Bye, Lil' Sebastian)". * Andy always tries to guess the ending of a movie. According to his ex-girlfriend Ann, he would always guess that the main character had been dead the whole time--an allusion to the 1999 psychological thriller film, The Sixth Sense. * Andy was spoiled and was a portrayed as a "jerk" in season one as he is shown being used to being pampered by Ann. But in the following seasons he has matured into a lovable goof who got humbled when he became a shoeshiner and living in the pit for a bit and marrying April. * He played baseball in high school. * He became a Knight of the British Empire by Eddie. * In "Emergency Response," during the personality evaluation of his Police Entrance Exam, when asked what he would do if he realized he'd pulled over his dad for speeding, Andy said, "First I'd be like, 'Dad, you're alive? What the hell? Also, do you know where my catcher's mitt is?'", implying that his father is deceased. * Andy has trouble guessing if a woman's pregnant or not. In the first episode of season six, it is implied that he was able to guess that Diane is pregnant, however, when Diane wants to talk to Ron in private about it he thinks she wants to talk to him. In "Flu Season 2," he seemingly guessed that Leslie was pregnant, but really just thought she was getting a dog. * Andy once forgot to brush his teeth for five weeks. * He didn't actually sell his last car, he just forgot where he parked it. * He doesn't know who Al Gore is and "at this point he is too afraid to ask." * When they say 2% milk, he doesn't know what the other 98% is. * When Andy was a baby his head was so big scientists did experiments on him. * He once threw beer at a swan, which then attacked his niece Rebecca. * Andy is the fourth Parks and Rec employee to discover Ron's alter ego, Duke Silver (though he at first believes Ron has a twin brother). * Andy is arguably the best matchmaker, successfully setting up two of his former Parks and Rec colleagues: Ron and Tom. * Andy and April have a son they name Jack (short for Burt Snakehole Ludgate Karate Dracula Macklin Demon Jack-o-Lantern Dwyer). Chris Pratt, who plays Andy, and his ex-wife Anna Faris have a son whose name is also Jack. * Ben mentions that Jack Dwyer came a little early. Coincidentally, Chris Pratt's son was born nine weeks premature. * He's been shown to be very intelligent but lacks common sense. * Andy mentions in the Season 6 premiere that he lost weight by giving up beer. The episode was filmed in London where Chris Pratt was filming Guardians of the Galaxy at the time and he had to lose weight for his role of Peter Quill/Star Lord, with the latter being written into the episode as an explanation to the audience. The show's writers and the rest of the cast decided to accommodate his schedule by moving filming over to England. He returned to the show later in the season following completion of filming on the movie. * Chris Pratt was shown in the intro as a guest star for season one, and became apart of the main cast starting in Season 2 & remained as a main character for the rest of the show's run. Photos This character has a Photo Gallery. References Category:April Ludgate Love Interests Category:Ann Perkins Love Interests Category:Main characters Category:Dwyer Family Category:Characters Category:Department of Parks and Recreation employees Category:Season 1 Characters Category:Season 2 Characters Category:Season 3 Characters Category:Season 4 Characters Category:Season 5 Characters Category:Season 6 Characters Category:Season 7 Characters Category:Male Characters